Wounds
by tectrices
Summary: //KenUno// Nobody thought the most violent captain and the gentlest could have anything in common. But after spending that much time healing him, it's only natural she'd get to know him, too. Prologue up.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Bleach.

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**Title:** Wounds  
**Chapter:** Prologue - Impatience  
**Characters/Pairing:** Unohana Retsu/Zaraki Kenpachi  
**Rating:** PG-13  
**Word Count: **849  
**Summary:** They seem like polar opposites, but they're both about to discover they have more in common than they first imagined. After spending that much time healing him, it's only natural she'd get to know him, too.  
**Date:** 28 December 2008

**-A/N:** So! This is my first KenUno attempt. This is just the prologue, and it's a little short, but I think it sets up the piece nicely. I hope everyone enjoys it; and reviews are always appreciated!

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Unohana Retsu sat in the office of the fourth division, enjoying a cup of tea. She was taking advantage of the unusually quiet day to do a bit of light reading.

It was unfortunate - though perhaps to be expected - that the warm, peaceful silence was suddenly shattered.

"Unohana-taichou!" a voice called, carried closer by the sound of running steps. A small, panting face poked itself around her doorframe. Nervously, a skittish young woman came in. Unohana put down her book. "We... You're needed immediately. There was a group of hollows, and... the eleventh division - "

As soon as she heard that, Unohana stood up. "Of course." She smiled to hide her irritation. "Please lead the way."

The small woman quickly walked back down the hallway, looking over her shoulder only once to make certain her captain was following. "We've got most things under control - all the injuries are being seen to. But... the eleventh division captain won't cooperate with anyone. He'll live, but he needs treatment."

"Don't worry," Unohana told her as they rounded a corner to the large infirmary where several members of the division in question were laid up in the small cots meant for short-term patients. "I'll take care of it."

Several rambunctious members of the eleventh were scattered around the room, harassing her division as they tried to tend to their patients. She was not pleased.

And in the middle of the room was a heavily bleeding Zaraki Kenpachi, screaming at anyone who approached him. Isane was fluttering uselessly around him, wringing her hands, trying to somehow coerce the large, hulking mass of man to let her conduct an exam. When she looked up and spotted her captain, her face fell into an expression of joy at the promise of respite. "Unohana-taichou!" she called, voice nearly dripping with relief.

Unohana walked over, her hands folded together over where her braid rested on her stomach. "Zaraki-taichou," she said blandly, "you're bleeding all over my floor."

He snarled viciously and she nodded discreetly to her lieutenant, asking Isane to let her handle the difficult man on her own. "And?"

"Either allow me to stop the bleeding or give me some assurance that you're willing to clean up the mess." She smiled passively.

He was getting angrier, and his reiatsu was leaking out. Many of her division members couldn't handle it, and already she could tell they were feeling the effects. She raised her own silently; he couldn't sense reiatsu, but unconsciously he would be able to sense her strength. "No," he told her viciously, "I'm going."

"Bye Braid-Lady!" Yachiru said, suddenly hopping up onto Zaraki's shoulder. The girl always seemed to appear out of nowhere.

"Yachiru-chan," she said, suddenly struck with an idea. "If you can convince Zaraki-taichou to allow me to work on him and to scare his men away, then I will promise you an entire bag of candy."

Yachiru's eyes grew wide and she leapt over Zaraki's head, landing on her feet right in front of Unohana. "A whole bag? Really, Braid-Lady? Really?"

"Don't listen to her, Yachiru, we - "

"Ken-chan!" She grabbed his leg and held on like glue. "Ken-chan!" she wailed. "You gotta let Braid-Lady stop the bleeding. You had fun fighting all the hollows - so it's okay. And I want candy!"

"You had all you're allowed this week."

Unohana smiled. "Oh, by the way Zaraki-taichou... I would be more than happy to watch her after I gave her the treat."

Zaraki stared at her a moment then yelled, "Okay, men, get the hell out of here. Go back to the division and... fight or clean or something."

For a moment they all muttered to themselves, but obediently all the eleventh division members capable of walking shuffled back out of Fourth's headquarters and out towards their own.

Unohana kept her expression even, but she was once again impressed by the devotion his division members had for their captain. There seemed nothing admirable about him but his near impossible strength. Perhaps that was all the eleventh division felt _should_ be admired.

"You asked your men to leave?" she queried.

Zaraki grunted. "Like I really want all of them standing here watching you poke and prod at me." He grabbed Yachiru by the scruff of her neck and lifted her up to eye level. "And you. Go back with them. Make sure they work. I'll come when I get done with whatever she's goin' to do to me."

Yachiru nodded and wiggled until he released her. "You got it, Ken-chan! Bye! Bye Braid-Lady! Don't forget my candy!" She grinned at the both of them, and with her arms spread wide, she ran off.

"Now," Unohana said. "Are you ready for your exam? I'm only doing this to help you, Zaraki-taichou."

"Whatever." He shrugged until he was bare to the waist. "Hurry up." He glared. "And I'm not cleaning up the blood."

Unohana surveyed the damage quickly. "Don't worry," she said, already feeling the heat of kido under her hands. "I'll see that someone takes care of it soon."

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Feedback and reviews - always appreciated.


	2. Making Rounds

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Bleach.

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**Title:** Wounds  
**Chapter:** One - Making Rounds  
**Characters/Pairing:** Unohana Retsu/Zaraki Kenpachi  
**Rating:** PG-13  
**Word Count: **960  
**Summary:** They seem like polar opposites, but they're both about to discover they have more in common than they first imagined. After spending that much time healing him, it's only natural she'd get to know him, too.  
**Date:** 19 June 2009

**-A/N: **A thousand pardons this took so long! And, to be quite honest, this new offering isn't even that great. But I finished the chapter, so I wanted to share. Enjoy! And thanks so much to everyone who reviewed the previous bit.

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"Come on, Ken-chan! Come on!"

"I'm coming, Yachiru, don't try and drag me."

Unohana sighed and walked over to her door. She slid it open and smiled at the eleventh division's captain and lieutenant. "Zaraki-taichou. Kusajishi-fukutaichou. I see you've come to hold me to our agreement."

Zaraki grunted. "Damn right – she hasn't shut up about her candy since you promised it to her." He took an intimidating step forward and glared. "And you better have it or else – "

"Excuse me, Zaraki-taichou," she said evenly, "but I do not go back on my word." She smiled, covering up her irritation with the rough man. "I _did_ promise, and I certainly don't intend to break it." She leaned down a little, giving Yachiru a warm smile. "Here," she said, holding out her hand. "I hope you enjoy."

Greedily, Yachiru snatched up the three pieces. "Ahh thanks, Braid-Lady." She swallowed, wiping the back of her hand across her mouth. "But where's the rest? There was a whole bag! I thought you said there was a whole bag."

"You'll get it, Yachiru-chan, don't worry. But since Zaraki-taichou needs me to watch you while I give you the treat, I thought I'd spread it out."

"But I want it all!" Yachiru whined, climbing on top of Zaraki's shoulder. "Come on, Braid-Lady, please?"

Unohana smiled. "I'm going to be very busy all day. If you're as wild as everyone claims once you've had so much sugar, I'm afraid I won't be able to handle you."

"No, don't listen to Pachinko ball and Feather-Brows! I'm good!"

Zaraki snorted. "Yachiru, don't lie."

The little girl pouted.

"Well," Unohana said, "if you'd like to come with me while I run a few errands, then maybe I could be persuaded to give it all to you now."

Yachiru nodded happily, grinning widely. "Yeah, we'll go! Right, Ken-chan?"

"Me? Why the hell do you need me with you?"

"You trust me with your lieutenant, then, Zaraki-taichou?" Unohana asked curiously.

"If anything happened to her, I'd have to take her here, anyway."

Unohana graced him with a warm smile. "Yes. I'm glad you see that." She turned to Yachiru. "Zaraki-taichou may come if he wishes, but he has to behave, as well. Now here you are." She pulled a small bag out of her robes and handed it to the eager girl. "Enjoy."

Yachiru didn't even have time to mutter a "thank you" as she started shoveling the whole bag into her mouth.

"Slow down," Zaraki instructed crossly. "If you choke, you're going to be sorry."

Unohana merely smiled.

Yachiru kept eating, heedless of Zaraki's warning, as the three headed out of the fourth division. Unohana noted with some distaste how the very sight of the eleventh division captain was enough to make many of her subordinates all but fling themselves out of the room. The fourth was without doubt the smallest child on the playground and the eleventh took no small pleasure in torturing its members as much as they could. It came as no surprise then that their leader would be terrifying. Unohana had thought of trying to talk to Zaraki-taichou, but it seemed unlikely that the brutish captain would be willing to listen to anything she had to say.

"So," Zaraki said, looking around him with a frown, "where the hell are we going anyway?"

"To see captain Ukitake-taichou," she answered evenly. "I told him I'd deliver another dose of his medicine today."

"Medicine?" Zaraki sneered. "That guy's always sick."

"Naturally," Unohana told him, pushing down her irritation with him. "Ukitake-taichou has a chronic condition that requires a continuous course of treatment."

"Puh." If she'd looked over at him, she'd be willing to bet he'd rolled his eyes. "That's stupid," he said. "Why bother if you're just goin' to be sick all the time?"

"I wouldn't underestimate him," Unohana told Zaraki, her tone light but weighted. "I'd wager he's stronger than you."

"Hey!" Yachiru chirped indignantly. "Nobody's stronger than Ken-chan! Right?"

Zaraki smiled fondly and ruffled the girl's hair. "I don't know, Yachiru. An' I guess we'll never find out because the bastard won't fight me…"

Unohana sighed. "Zaraki-taichou, you actually want to fight the other captains?"

"Hell yes, I do! There aren't enough hollow attacks and none of my division members want to fight me all out. They're only good for training."

"Perhaps you should curb this fighting impulse, then. Fighting other captains will only breed discord in Seireitei."

Zaraki snorted in laugher. "And I care because?"

She sighed again. "It would seem that you don't care at all."

They continued walking, the two captains quiet. Yachiru, on the other hand, was chattering away – mostly talking to Zaraki, but occasionally she would address Unohana. The sugar she'd eaten was beginning to kick in and she was running circles around them, jumping from Zaraki's shoulder to nearby rooftops to the ground and back again. Despite the incessant chatter, Unohana found the hyperactive young lieutenant rather endearing – at moments annoying, yes, but overall she was rather adorable.

When they arrived to see captain Ukitake, he was – to say the least – surprised. "Hello," he said, looking from Unohana to Zaraki with a frown. "Um… it's nice to see you, Unohana. And you as well, Zaraki-taichou. I'm sure."

Zaraki wasn't interested in pleasantries. "Okay, you gave him the medicine. Can me and Yachiru go?"

"I was never keeping you," Unohana explained calmly. "If you recall, I volunteered to watch Yachiru."

She bowed politely. "Have a good afternoon, Ukitake-taichou. Please let me know if you need anything."

She took her leave of the thirteenth division captain, Yachiru still trailing behind. "Okay, kid," Zaraki snapped. "We're leaving."

"Bye, Braid-Lady!" Yachiru said with a wave, climbing up to her usual perch.

Unohana smiled. "Goodbye."


End file.
